Bigger Than a Bread Box

"Everything felt wrong, lopsided. I knew from the weird fuzzy humming inside my head," thinks 12-year-old Rebecca Shapiro as her family ruptures before her eyes. Rebecca's father has been out of work, and her mother is fed up; after a big fight with her husband, she packs up the children and drives from Baltimore to Atlanta to visit Rebecca and Lew's grandmother. When Rebecca discovers this isn't just a quick visit (her mother has a temp job for herself lined up and a new school picked out for Rebecca), she's furious. One day while exploring her grandmother's attic, Rebecca finds a magic breadbox that will grant any wish that fits inside it: a cookie, money, pens, lip-gloss, candy, or a diamond. But Rebecca comes to understand that the box won't solve her problems (conversely, it creates some enormous ones); she has to do that on her own. Introspective and rich with delicate imagery, this coming-of-age tale shares themes with Snyder's Penny Dreadful (2010). The insightful, memorable, and complex characters that Snyder creates result in a story with the same qualities. Ages 8–12. (Sept.)